Trade group lifts porn moratorium after HIV scare

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A porn industry group has lifted a week-old moratorium on adult film production that was prompted by an HIV scare.

The Free Speech Coalition lifted the ban late Tuesday after all performers who worked with HIV-infected actress Cameron Bay were medically cleared.

The coalition says a panel of three doctors concluded that it was safe to resume filming.

The coalition called the moratorium last week after Bay received a preliminary positive test result, later confirmed by follow-up testing. Bay publicly identified herself and said she was cooperating with medical personnel to help notify her partners.

A state lawmaker who is proposing a bill that would require condoms in porn films produced in California called the coalition's decision "dangerous and irresponsible."

"It can take up to three months for a person with HIV to test positive," Assemblywoman Isadore Hall, a Democrat from Los Angeles, said. "For those with HIV, use of current HIV medication can also bring viral loads below detectable levels, leaving fellow actors and the public susceptible to this deadly disease."

Vivid Entertainment Group and other large porn companies honored the moratorium, although it was unclear whether the many smaller producers did so or how many film shoots were canceled.

A similar work ban was enacted last year after nearly a dozen performers were infected with syphilis.

The industry currently is challenging a Los Angeles County law passed last year requiring actors to wear condoms during porn shoots.

(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)